This is the third CD from
The Five Browns, talented American siblings who are all studying
at the Juilliard. They’ve clearly reached a degree of eminence,
for biographical matters such as these are dispensed with
in the retro packaging of their disc. I had to do some internet
sleuthing to find out a few details, having in fact assumed
from the photographs that they were a swinging vocal combo,
school of Anita O’Day and Tony Bennett. In fact they all
play piano and theirs is a difficult disc to classify. It’s
predominately classical with some arrangements and adaptations
thrown in. The theme is vaguely to do with “blue” as a look
at the titles will disclose; tristesse and languor seem also
to qualify.

Greg
Anderson made the Rachmaninoff Paganini arrangement for all
five Browns to play – how they were distributed around the
keyboards is a little mystery not disclosed. In fact how
many pianos were involved is similarly mysterious. They play
two movements from The Carnival of the Animals. On the first
they’re joined by Gil Shahan in the violin transcribed part – nicely
done. The visual aspect of the three female Browns playing
the Debussy shouldn’t be discounted though we only have the
aural one on disc. Gregory Brown takes on Art Tatum’s arrangement
of Aunt Hagar’s Blues and does creditably though his
playing is as yet rather book bound and lacking in contrasts.

The
Romance (only) from Rachmaninoff’s Suite is an intelligent
choice as it’s written for two pianos. Desirae
and Deondra Brown do the honours. It’s doubtless unrealistic
to compare them with Goldenweiser (the dedicatee) and Ginzburg
in their 1948 recording though I did. It conforms to the
general slowing up in performances over the years; it’s a
bit languid and lateral as well, over-reflective. I note
however that one of the Browns – Gregory – has on a previous
disc recorded York Bowen’s Op.155 Toccata so they clearly
have a penchant for big, rich, ripe romantic composers and
their satellite works. There’s also a rather funereally played
Chopin Nocturne here, the Earl Wild arranged Embraceable
You, and another guest appearance, this time from trumpeter
Chris Botti in the adaptation of An American in Paris (as “Home
Blues”) arranged by Jeffrey Shumway. There’s a strange
old beast in the shape of the sonorously intoned Fantasia
on'Dives and Lazarus' which comes bedecked with
what I can only call interpolations by Leroy Anderson and
Sibelius. I quite enjoyed the funky workout on John Novacek’s
intermittently convincing Reflections on "Shenandoah”,
played by all the Browns. The bonus track features all five
Browns vamping away behind the late Dean Martin in one of
those weird acts of necromancy so beloved of record companies
and loathed by everyone else.

The
spruce and elegant quintet of Browns have produced an enjoyable
album geared to the younger market. If it makes friends for
the classical muse that’s no bad thing.

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